Rewrites and Updates: Kagerou's Pathfinder Journal

I officially made a start on the rewrite for Kagerou Book 1! I like to edit on paper so I had to print it all out. I'm hoping to hit this hard to have it done soon for releasing~

 

 

Yes, that is just the one novel! 222 pages...

 

 

In other writing news, I started off writing a new fantasy story two weeks ago. It's now turned into something that is beginning to resemble a full length novel...oops? But the story is demanding to be written so I must give in. My poor wrists are suffering from the fast pace it has set, though.

 

Wish me luck! And tune in tomorrow for Part 3 of The Salon of Enchanted Beauty~

 

Kagerou's Journal 14

Catch up on previous parts here.


Day 3

I take my pen up again today to recount the events which transpired. We discovered some disturbing information about the night raid by the goblins which I will explain.

The day began normally enough. Over breakfast Eyotah received word that the armor she’d ordered would be ready the next day. The halfling, Stormy, set off to the cathedral to have a few flasks of water blessed. She appears to be proficient in the holy arts herself, but I suspected, at the time, that she wanted to visit the healer.

She left the three of us sitting at the table eating leftovers from the feast the night previous.  I couldn’t quite remember but I thought I’d heard something about a grave robbing at the cathedral.

Abruptly I shoved myself upright. “There’s no point in setting off on our job until tomorrow when you get your armor.”

“What about it?” Eyotah yawned, bored.

“I thought I heard something about a grave robbing so I’m going to poke around for curiosity’s sake.

Now both of them looked more awake.

“Count me in,” said Breuvial.

“Me too.” Eyotah rubbed her forehead. “Maybe it’ll take my mind off this hangover.”

I ducked my head so she wouldn’t see my smirk. It’s little wonder her head hurt after all she drank. I stretched leisurely as they persuaded their bodies to stand up. Then I set off in the direction I thought the halfling had gone.

“I suppose one of us knows the way to the cathedral?” I mumbled.

The spire of the cathedral guided us like a beacon so we made good time. The priest was escorting Stormy outside as we arrived.

“Father Tobyn’s tomb. That’s the one.”

“The earth is still turned up?” Stormy asked.

“Aye. We haven’t had the time to restore it yet.” The priest looked worried.

“Rest assured. I’ll let you know if I find anything new.”

“Thank you.” He bowed slightly and hurried back inside.

“How’s the healer, Hannah?” Eyotah asked.

Stormy registered our presence. “She’s doing badly. Father Zantus is unable to heal her at the moment.”

Breuvial clucked her tongue sympathetically. I changed the topic.

“I take it you’re interested in the grave robbing too?”

She whipped around to face me. “How…?”

“I heard some rumors back at the tavern. I’m not deaf either. You were just talking about a grave with that priest.” Nonchalantly I dug a finger in my ear.

She relaxed. “The previous father’s, Tobyn’s, tomb has been disturbed.”

“Then let’s go investigate and see if we can’t shed light on the situation.”

Eyotah grunted her approval and Stormy led the way.

“The night guard only saw shapes of people in the graveyard. One tall and several short. They carried Father Tobyn’s body away. For what purpose no one knows. Here we are.” She stopped in front of a fresh pile of dirt.

Eyotah bent down to examine the prints on the ground. “I see six goblin prints and one human size boot print. Beylor?” The bear sniffed the ground. He growled in Sylvan that he smelled three drunken goblins and a familiar human scent.

We all looked at each other at that. So the human was familiar. That boded ill to me.

Stormy lent her nose to the effort. “The human smells similar to our tavern host, Amico, and someone from the glassworks. Maybe a relative?”

“We should go back to The Rusty Dragon and confirm that it isn’t Amico’s scent.” Eyotah pushed herself up and started walking.

I nodded my agreement and followed. The others came as well, though Stormy’s face was blank of any emotion.

Kagerou's Journal Links

I thought it'd be convenient if I collected all the links to Kage's story in one place. Enjoy!

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7
Part 8
Part 9
Part 10
Part 11
Part 12
Part 13
Part 14

Kagerou's Journal 13

Read part 12 here.


Aldern smiled and nodded eagerly. “I’ll have everything prepared for your visit.” His eyes lingered on me slightly longer before they focused on the halfling instead. “And lastly, who are you?” He was done eating so he clasped his hands and leaned forward.

She grimaced. “My name is Stormy.”

“A halfling I see.”

She hesitated, then nodded. “Yes.”

“Are you from here? You appear to know the area. I didn’t think, though, that halflings were native to this region.”

“We aren’t. I’ve visited this town many times and have had extended stays.”

I noted the discrepancy with what she had told us, but kept quiet. She must have a reason to hide her true business.

Cheers and applause prevent Aldern from addressing her again. Breuvial dropped back into her seat, fanning her face with her hand. Her clothes seemed to clink a little more loudly than before and I wondered how much money she had pocketed.

Aldern clapped his hands together. “Wonderful dancing, Breuvial. Correct?”

She nodded. “Thank you.”

Aldern refilled her cup and she gulped it down. “Ah, it’s empty.” He moved to refill her cup again but only a drop came out.

“Another keg!” he called.

I saw one rise up and start bobbing and weaving through the crowd. Ick appeared underneath it as he approached the table. He banged the spigot into the keg and set it on the table.

“Breuvial, tell me, are you from this area?”

“No. I’m just passing through.” She waved her hand vaguely and her sleeve fell back, revealing more of her tattoos.

“Is that a mark of sorcery? Can you do magic?”

“Yes. I have some skill in it.”

Aldern offered to refill her cup.

“Oh no. I’ve drunk enough. Thank you.”

“Then don’t mind me.” He picked up the keg and chugged it down. Those surrounding us caught sight of him and cheered him on. He banged the empty keg down on the table, grinned and then passed out flat on his face.

A servant wearing Aldern’s insignia approached behind his master’s slumped form.

“Please pardon my master. He wished to reward you for saving him.” The servant set down a small, heavy bag in front of each of us. He bowed, picked up his master and left.

I hefted my bag in my hand. It was of a decent weight and clinked softly. “I wasn’t expecting money.” I grinned at the others. “But it is welcome.”

They nodded in response and Eyotah pounded her fist with the bag on the table.

I rose to my feet. I wanted to count my money in my room away from prying eyes. The crowd was so dense I had to detour all the way past the bar.

“I’m taking off to check things out. Those goblins are up to something.”

I froze as Ick’s whisper reached my ears.

A female voice replied, “Be careful. You don’t want a repeat of last time.”

The voice belonged to the owner. I lingered a moment longer but neither poke again and I thought I saw Ick leave the building.

I reached the bottom of the stairs in time to hear Eyotah begin shouting and babbling in her native tongue. She had found a dog somewhere to mount and, waving wildly, she yelled something about slaying a hog monster before she overbalanced and fell off with a crash into a bucket of slops.

Laughing, I climbed the stairs and thanked the gods I wasn’t her roommate.

Kagerou's Journal 12

Read part 11 here.


She was quite right. Many people filled the tavern judging by the noise level, and more were still crowding in. The Shoanti shoved her way in first making room with her spear as needed. I darted forward and took advantage of the path she created.

The crowd parted for us, though, once Aldern called out loudly,

“Welcome, my heroes! Please come over here. The feast only awaits your presence!”

Every head turned to watch us and many clapped or cheered. I even heard a few wolf whistles but I couldn’t pinpoint the source. Aldern was dressed in an extravagant outfit, flaunting his wealth. It matched his pompous, overblown attitude. I barely registered the presence of a woman with asian features standing near him. She stood there watching us until Ick called her away to the bar.

Aldern jumped around making sure we were seated and our plates filled with food. Once our cups were filled as well, he grabbed his own and toasted to us. Most of the people in the tavern followed suit. The Shoanti gladly joined in and downed two cups in a row. With a silly grin on her face, she called for a refill.

Aldern filled his own plate with food and sat down at the table with us. “We haven’t had a proper conversation yet. Even though you are all heroes, I cannot continue calling you that. It would be rude. What are your names?”

We glanced at each other, silently willing another to go first. Eyotah gave in first with a wave of her hand, being the least hesitant due to drink.

“The name is Eyotah. I used to be part of a Shoanti tribe up north.” Her mouth twitched and she raised her mug to hide it. In one gulp she drained half of it.

Aldern leaned forward, riveted, but she didn’t elaborate. “And the rest of you?” He addressed us, but he still appeared intrigued by Eyotah.

My roommate gave in next. “My name is Breuvial.” She bowed her head slightly.

“A Varisian I take it?” She nodded. “Well met. Might I be correct in saying it was your dance I witnessed early yesterday in the square?”

She flushed slightly. “Yes, that was me.” She winked and smiled. “Would you like a repeat performance?”

Aldern clapped his hands. “Yes, please!” I would be honored.”

He rose to his feet and graciously helped Breuvial to her. She batted an eye at him and drew out her scarf with a flick that caught the attention of everyone in the room. The noisy partygoers stamped their feet and whistled at her and she began to twirl.

Aldern resumed his seat and joined in, clapping. His eyes followed her progress around the room. I thought I saw the glint of coins in the air around her.

She’ll make a pretty penny tonight. I sipped at my cup before realizing that Aldern’s eyes were now fixed on my face. I sighed.

“My name is Kagerou. A pleasure to meet you my good sir and thank you for the feast.” I raised my cup and drank once again.

“Well met indeed.” He raised his glass to me. “Where do you hail from? A half-elf like yourself is rare in these parts.”

“I was born in Erages though I did not spend many years longer than childhood there.” I paused but his eyes kept boring into me. “I passed through the lodge in Magnimar before coming here. They sent me on business.”

“A pathfinder.” His eyes brightened.

“Only an initiate.” I returned to my cup. People like him were far too interested in my occupation because of the knowledge I might have come in contact with. I disliked such people, consciously greedy or not.

He continued to attempt to prod me into speaking with his eyes, but I had had enough of speaking. Instead, he broke the silence.

“My main residence is in Magnimar. I assume you’ll be passing through once more when your business here has concluded?”

I nodded.

“Excellent!” He fished out a piece of paper and handed it to me. “Please come visit me. Here is my address. I’ll treat you to another feast when you do.”

I smiled politely and took the card. “Thank you for the offer. I shall try to take you up on it.
I do have to pass through Magnimar on my way back to the main lodge.”

Kagerou's Journal 11

(Now that my life is starting to settle down a bit expect the Kagerou posts to resume with a more regular frequency. You can read part 10 here to refresh your memory.)


The inside of Quink’s house was cluttered with curious, ancient scrolls, books, artifacts and many things of which I had no knowledge. He led us to a small seating area and cleared off enough room for us to sit. He put the kettle on to boil and arranged five teacups beside the teapot on a table. He spooned tea leaves in the teapot very carefully. By this time, steam poured out of the kettle. He removed it from the fire and filled the teapot. The lid of the teapot clinked softly as he settled it into place.

“I tell you ‘bout Sinspawn now.” He sat down facing us. “They creatures summoned by rune lords to do bidding. Very evil magic. Each is different. Each comes from one of the seven deadly sins – envy, gluttony, greed, lust, pride, sloth, and wrath.”

“How can you tell them apart?” the halfling asked.

“Each looks different. Different in size too. Depends on which sin it came from.” He shrugged.

“So you can tell us which kind of sinspawn made this print!” She waved the sheet of paper in her hand.

“Do I look like I see one?” No. I do not know. I only hear about them. Don’t want to see one. Might die! You crazy.” He shook his head as he poured tea into the five teacups.

I accepted mine and sipped at it, thinking. The presence of a sinspawn meant that someone else had been behind the attack. So why target the healer?

Putting the teacup down, I asked, “The priest mentioned an event in Sandpoint five years ago that paralleled yesterday’s events. Might you be able to tell us about it?”

“Oh that. That worse. Whole town burned down. Called the Late Unpleasantness.

“A mild way of putting it,” I muttered. “How is it similar?”

“Probably same cause.”

The halfling cut in. “What do you mean by that?”

“Sinspawn cause craziness. Woodcutter called Chopper went crazy. Tried to kill lots of people with axe. Even now hi house empty. And priest’s daughter went crazy too and burned down last cathedral!”

“How does a sinspawn cause that?” asked the spearwoman.

“Wrath sinspawn cause wrath in people near it.” He spoke as if it should be obvious. “You know more ‘bout sinspawn once you go to ruins. Job, right?”

We nodded.

“Bring interesting this back and use paper to make rubbing of things on walls like writing. Ok? You understand? I pay gold when you come back.” He rose and shooed us out the door. Once we crossed the threshold he slammed the door behind us.

“What an odd fellow,” I remarked.

“Indeed.” The Shoanti shifted her spear.

“Where to?” Breuvial asked.

“I suppose that young man, Aldern ought to have the boar ready by now.” I watched as a half-orc stumbled out of the building across the street. He noticed me looking and sneered at us before he lumbered off to the Hagfish. The name reminded me of the job board.

“Perhaps we could inquire about the jobs at the Hagfish.”

I spoke to no one in particular but the halfling answered. “Not today. It’s a nasty crowd in there. Let’s return to the Rusty Dragon.”

I nodded along with the rest and we retraced our steps back to the tavern. The Shoanti fell back to match my pace.

“Where did you disappear to earlier?”

“The North gate. I saw some fighting over that way last night so I wanted to find out what had happened. And what about you?” I looked her up and down. “You didn’t have those bruises or that rip when I left.”

“I…sparred with Stormy.” She shrugged it off.

“Who’s Stormy?”

"Oh sorry, she’s the halfling.”

Looking ahead I studied the halfling. “What an unusual name. Do you two know each other?”

She hesitated. “We’ve met before.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll stop prying. Though,” I added, as an afterthought, “you stink. Did she throw that goblin’s barrel of pickles at you?”

She laughed. “No, no. I had some business at the tanner. The smell of the baths must have clung to my clothes.”

“Looks like the party has started without us,” Breuvial called from in front of us, interrupting our conversation.

Kagerou's Journal 10

Read part 9 here.

Even out on the street people pointed and stared. Some even clapped or called out, but I dodged away before any could attempt to waylay me. I set my course for the northern gate, deeming my report incomplete until I found out what had happened the previous night. I also was curious to know upon whose side the green giant had been.

Upon reaching the northern gate I observed a large number of workmen clearing away piles of rubble. The enormous wooden gate lay to one side, twisted and broken. A group of workmen labored to repair it. Curiously, I didn’t observe any bodies from the fight the previous night.

I caught a passing workman, a carpenter by the look of his tools, and asked, “What happened here?”

His face twitched as he frowned in concentration. “H-he r-ripped off th-the g-gate.”

“Who did?”

“Th-the giant from th-the Rusty D-dragon,” he replied. His stutter made him difficult to understand. When I looked puzzled he explained, “Th-the c-cook.”

“He’s the cook at the Rusty Dragon?”

He nodded.

“Ok, thanks.”

It looked like I came to the wrong place for information. It was time to seek out the gigantic, green cook at the Rusty Dragon. At least that explained the apron and the hat from the previous night.

I headed back that direction, intending to seek him out, but something distracted me. I paused as I saw the halfling, Shoanti, and Breuvial leave the Rusty Dragon together. Curious, I followed along behind. As far as I knew, we were all strangers, so why were they joining together as friends outside of the necessity during battle?

The halfling led the way across town to a short building whose windows were filled with curios. The sign over the door said ‘Brodert Quink’. The name was the same as the one on the job listing I’d read. Maybe they were here to apply for it?

She knocked on the door. I crept closer to listen as the door opened to reveal a short man, who looked to be of asian descent.

“What do you want?” His voice rang out sharply.

The halfling handed him a sheet of paper. I strained my ears to hear what she was speaking. I caught something about “drawings of the animal” on the sheet. I edged closer but Quink had the sheet now so I couldn’t see what was drawn on it.

“Sure, sure. It looks like a sinspawn. No I don’t know what kind. Maybe rage. Maybe not. I got job. You want to do it? I pay gold.” He looked around at them eagerly. “You go there you might find out what kind of sinspawn.”

I jumped into the conversation at that point. I’d been considering applying for the job anyway. Casually, I walked closer.

“What kind of job is this? I saw your notice at the Rusty Dragon and it sounds interesting.”

“The halfling and Breuvial looked surprised at my appearance but the Shoanti spearwoman didn’t.

“Of course it interesting. I want you to go to lighthouse ruin and look for writing to bring back.”

“What about this sinspawn? Why should going to the ruin help?” the halfling persisted.

“And what is a sin spawn?” Breuvial asked.

“Are you accepting job?” he asked.

“Yes.” The halfling nodded.

“Then come inside and we talk over tea.” He retreated into his house and we followed.

Kagerou's Journal 9

Read part 8 here.

Day 2

The noise from downstairs woke me, the sunlight having failed to do so. Even though my body protested, I sat up and stretched. My roommate, Breuvial, still lay sleeping. Quietly, I reached into my pack for pen, ink and paper. I set it all down on the flattest surface, the floor, and began writing. I recounted the previous day’s events up until this point.

The dancer is still sound asleep as I write. It is best if she remains ignorant of my identity for a while longer. Something strange is going on in this town and I feel I ought to investigate further before sending back this report.

My roommate stirred as I packed away my writing implements.

“Good morning, sleepyhead.” Carefully I closed the flap of my pack with a special lock. With a pickpocket in the room it wouldn’t be wise to take chances.

She grunted in response and rolled upright, blinking her eyes..

“Hungry? Lunch appears to be in full swing downstairs, or so my nose tells me.” I shoved my pack underneath the bed and waited for her to get up.

“Definitely hungry,” she mumbled, standing up. Though most certainly not awake, she did amble out the door once I opened it. The door had no lock which irritated me, so I jammed it shut, hoping that would be enough to discourage light fingers.

On the landing we encountered the other two from the previous day. The Shoanti nodded in welcome. The halfling didn’t look too well though with deep, dark bags under her eyes.

“You didn’t sleep well?” I asked, falling into step with her.

“No. A nightmare kept waking me.”

“Bad luck.” I tried to stay quiet but my curiosity prevailed. “What kind of nightmare?”

“None of your business.” She grimaced, then muttered, “Drowning.”

“Drowning? I can see why that would keep you up.” She ignored me and increased her pace.

The dining room was the opposite of the previous night. Guests of the tavern and townsfolk crowded around the tables in the sunken dining area, eating and talking and occasionally throwing trash into the roaring fires.

I spotted the young man from the night before and pointed him out to the others. Once we came in full sight of the diners, they broke into a storm of cheering. The noise attracted the young man’s attention. He rushed over to address us.

“Good afternoon! I must thank you again for saving me yesterday. Please, join me for supper. I’ve rented the whole tavern for a celebration feast. I’ll provide for everything including a main dish of roast boar!”

Before we could do more than nod, he rushed off, leaving us to wade through a sea of well-wishers to the bar for food. The noise hurt my ears, so I grabbed something to eat and wandered over to the board I’d seen the night before. There weren’t as many people over there.

There were only three listings on the board. The first read:

Brodert Quink requires the services of a hardy party of adventures to explore and catalog a local ruin. Service will be well compensated as well as a rewarding sense of accomplishment in aiding the cause of science and silencing the voices of idiot men who have gone to their dotage.

Reward 200GP - 500 GP
Interested parties please inquire at number 8, Tower Street

It sounded the most promising but I read on.

A local merchant requires a descreet investigation team for some top secret information gathering and branging a brigand ta sweet justice! Call at the Hagfish, ask for Blanche. Reward Nahgoshable.

I didn’t care for the misspellings in the second one but I still noted it. No reward listed though. The third read:

Gorvi need strong brain to find what happened to stuff. Govi pay good yellow gold to know what happen to stuff so Gorvi can break theefs face! Find me at Hagfish.

I could barely read it the drunken scrawl and only noted it as it had the same location of inquiry as the previous one.

My stroll over to the board hadn’t gone unnoticed though and people kept coming up to talk to me. I smiled politely and nodded my way out of the crowd and out the door. I was not looking forward to the amount of people at the feast that evening.

Kagerou's Journal 8

Read part 7 here.

On the way I asked the others what had happened to make them exit the building through the drain with an additional person. The halfling volunteered the information first.

“As I said before, I’m familiar with this town and I know the healer, Hannah. When I didn’t find her on the first or second floor, I checked the basement. She has a small altar to Gozreh down there. The moment I reached it I knew something was wrong because despite the fire, the basement was ice cold. I heard a loud crash and hurried forward to open the double doors. I found the bear lying amidst broken wood, his fur on fire. I quickly healed him.”

I raised my eyebrow but made no mention of her skill. She must have been the one that had healed us in the water and in the fight with the goblins.

She continued. “When I looked around I saw a blood trail and bloody footprints of some gigantic monster leading to the chimney. Also, the poor of holy water was boiling from contact with some type of evil.

“I looked first up the chimney and found Hannah injured. I think she may have tried to escape whatever it was. This good woman,” she gestured to the Shoanti, “appeared then and helped me to get her down. I knew the fire was too great for us to escape that way so the pool was the only option left to us.

“I have some talent in blessing evil things, so I blessed the pool and returned it to its holy state so it would stop boiling. She cast an air bubble for Hannah and herself and we set off swimming at which point we met up with you at the grate. You have my thanks for unlocking it. Otherwise we might have drowned.”

“You’re welcome. But that is quite the tale. You think, then, that the fire wasn’t caused by normal means but by something evil?”

“Aye. By whatever monster attacked my friend.” She looked sad.

We arrived at a three story building made from gray stone. “Here is the Rusty Dragon.” She pushed open the door.

The late hour meant that the Rusty Dragon was nearly empty. A huge tapestry dominated one wall with a large dragon curling round a fiery town. The walls were cluttered with various items and trophies and on one wall there was a huge board with notices. The few people there slumped over their cups in front of the small flames in the huge fireplaces. There was no sign of the owner but I could see the top of a head behind the bar.

We headed for the bar and the short person came into view. He was a tiny goblin and he sat upon a barrel of pickles, idly munching on pieces of food drawn from the barrel.

When he spotted us, he asked, “Whatcha want to drink?”

We looked sideways at each other. The halfling stepped forward first and ordered a pint of Lunchard ale. The Varisian ordered a half and half of Rio cider and wine. I preferred to stay on the safe side, not being familiar with this tavern, and ordered wine.

The Shoanti, however, slapped her hand down and said, “Surprise me!”

The goblin chuckled appreciatively and came back with a tall mug, the smell of which make be gag. She lifted it and chugged it down on the spot. A second later she collapsed to the floor, unconscious. The bear cautiously sniffed her mug, drank the rest and soon he had joined her on the floor.

The goblin just chuckled. Rather than continue to watch the pathetic pair, I asked him about the young man from earlier, Aldern.

“Him? Yeah, he’s staying here, but he’s already gone to bed.” His hand darted forward and the next thing I knew he was fiddling with my Pathfinder compass. “You an explorer?”

“I get around,” I replied, deliberately vague. I held out my hand and he tossed my compass back.

“I suppose you’ll be wanting rooms.” We nodded. “Being adventurers, I can give ‘em to you for free. I only have two though. Mind sharing?”

I looked at the others. I hadn’t seen anything to prove they weren’t who they said they were, but I still wasn’t sure about the strange halfling or the bear.

“I’ll share with you,” I said to the Varisian. I at least knew what she was capable of. “If you two,” I glanced at the bear, “or three wouldn’t mind sharing?”

The halfling glanced at the slumbering Shoanti. “I don’t mind. But the bear’s sleeping outside.”

“That’s settled then,” the goblin said happily. “I still have some leftover porridge if you want free food?” He proffered a bowl of gray goop.

“No, thank you.” I backed away from the nasty stuff. It didn’t look like porridge to me.

“Your choice.” The goblin disappeared behind the bar and reappeared to lead the way a moment later. “Follow me. I’m Ick, by the way. If you need anything, just ask.”

We murmured our assent and followed him upstairs. I and the Varisian took the first room and the others took the second, the bear having gone outside to sleep.

I slung my pack onto the bed and sat down facing my roommate. “If we’re sharing a room, we ought to introduce ourselves. My name is Kagerou and I’m a traveler. And you?”

She bowed slightly. “My name is Breuvial. I’m a dancer who dabbles in magic.”

“You are quite talented on both those points.” I lay down on the bed. “And also quite the talented pickpocket.” I smirked at her startled expression. “I have eyes and I was watching before the fight broke out. Don’t worry. I won’t turn you in. But you’ll be sorry if you try the same on me. Just a warning. Good night, Breuvial.” I turned over and gradually drifted off to sleep.

K = Kagerou's Journal 7

Today's post is brought to you by the letter K and these following spons- Just kidding, just kidding. But this is the post themed around the letter K - an extra dose of Kagerou's Journal! I hope you enjoy it and you can read part 6 here if you missed it or you could start from part 1 if you are new to this story.

The Varisian swam up close beside me and kicked the lock. Finally it broke, though the gate was still rusted shut. The bear propelled itself forward to ram the grate so I backed away. I had no wish to be run over. But the bear rammed into the Shoanti instead, knocking her into the wall of the tunnel.

The little halfling attempted the feat as well and failed so she retreated back to the bundle they’d brought along. The Shoanti pushed the bear off of her and vainly tried to push the grate while the Varisian failed to remove the broken padlock. The bear prepared for another ram and this time wedged it open a little.

Finally, I saw how to do it and swam forward. Deftly, I removed the lock at about the same time I felt the pain from my burns vanish. When I looked around, the Varisian’s burns seemed to have vanished as well.

Now that the lock was gone, the others easily pushed it open and we all desperately swam for the surface. I was completely out of breath and the open air was heavenly. We dragged ourselves onto the waterfront. The girls of the brothel had quit the bucket brigade and the house was very nearly finished burning. Instead, they were clustered around the girls I and the others had saved from the upper floor. All were pregnant and one was writhing in pain from labor.

With huffing and wheezing, the priest, Father Zantus, arrived. I was too tired so I let the others explain what was going on. I thought his face whitened with something like fear once he saw the person the halfling had dragged from the water. Her bundle turned out to be a woman who was unconscious. Her stomach was covered in blood. I guessed from the exchange that she was the healer Hannah and the owner of the house.

The halfling explained how she’d found her in the basement next to a desecrated alter to Gozreh. The priest’s face paled even more when he heard about the footsteps in the chamber and the boiling pool of desecrated holy water.

He left us and knelt down next to the girl in labor, beginning to chant a purification spell over her.

“I hope I am in time to save them.” The priest looked even more worried.

I pulled myself up and walked over to him. “Why are you so worried?”

“Five years ago, this town was nearly burnt to the ground. A woman was pregnant at that time and later she gave birth to a demon.”

“And you think the same might happen now?”

“Aye.”

The loud cries of the girl in labor distracted both of us. We looked up to see her giving birth to a baby which didn’t look human. The baby made no noise and lay still. It had been born dead. The priest rose quickly.

“Come, we must take her, the baby and Hannah to the Cathedral.”

Some of the bystanders picked them up and followed the priest. The halfling looked longingly after the priest. She, along with the rest of us, was soaking wet.

“Shall we go change into new clothes?” I asked. They nodded. “Where to?”

The Shoanti asked, “Didn’t the young man from earlier mention an inn or tavern? He promised us free food.”

“The Rusty Dragon, wasn’t it?”

“I know where it is,” the halfling said. When she looked at her, she continued. “I’ve been in this town for a while.”

“Lead on.” I gestured for her to go first.

Kagerou's Journal 6

Read part 5 here.

I whipped around in time to see the large shape of the bear crash through the floor of the first floor room. I flicked my eyes up and saw the last woman still hanging out of the window.

“I knew the bear was too heavy,” I muttered. Turning, I yelled. “Madam! Come and help move these girls away from the fire. Please!”

I trusted the Madam to grab the girls and ran to stand underneath the window. The woman was precariously balanced. The Varisian managed to catch her before she fell and handed her down to me. Before I could lower her to the ground, a flash of movement caught my eye inside the building. A man had snuck in the other door and was busy stuffing bottles and boxes into a bag.

Reflexively, I dropped the girl, drew my crossbow, and shot at the thief. Unfortunately the heat haze threw my aim off and I missed. He jumped, startled, and darted aside. He picked up a bucket of lamp oil and held it threateningly while continuing to back away. He kept his eyes fixed on me. Hence he didn’t see the Varisian as she jumped off the roof. She only narrowly missed flattening him because he jumped aside at the last minute.

Before he could regain his balance, I fired again, this time hitting the bucket of lamp oil. The oil began to leak out on the floor at his feet. However, his eyes remained on us and he didn’t notice the trickle drenching his shoe and puddling on the floor. With a nasty grin he threw the oil at myself and the Varisian who had come in behind me. The oil combusted as it passed through some flames, drenching us in liquid fire. Unfortunately for him, the fire ignited the oil at his feet and he caught on fire as well.

Yelling, the Varisian sprinted towards the water barrel. I didn’t stop to see whether she was alright. I solely focused on getting to the ocean to put out my own flaming clothes. With a running jump, I dunked myself into the sea. The salt water stung so much I scrunched my eyes shut. However, the water, once it stopped stinging, felt cool and soothing on my burned skin.

I opened my eyes to guide myself back to the surface, but a curious sight met my eyes. A short distance away there was hole like a drainpipe, except it was barred by a padlocked grate. Something drew me to it and when I approached I saw that the plants didn’t look well around it. Nor did the burned bits floating out.

A back door to the house!

The house hadn’t looked like it had much time left before it collapsed so I thought to open the grate just in case. Upon closer inspection of the lock, I realized it was rusted shut. I fished the right size pick out of my kit and poked it in there. I must have gotten it stuck or used to much force because after a minute it snapped clean in two leaving part of it in the lock.

My air was starting to run out now. I twisted around, looking for help and saw the Varisian swimming towards me. I guess she’d wondered why I hadn’t resurfaced. I gestured towards the lock and she seemed to understand. She stretched out her hand and mouthed something. Air bubbles streamed out and I felt a stream of cold pass me. When I turned back to the lock it was frozen solid.

I picked up a rock and banged on it. Nothing happened. On the other side the Shoanti appeared with an enormous air bubble around her head. She rammed into the grate but it barely budged.

Kagerou's Journal 5

Read part 4 here.

Through the nearest window, I saw two pregnant girls cowering in the corner. I couldn’t blame them. One, the house was on fire and two, the huge bear from earlier was smashing through the door right next to them. I could see the halfling through the smoke as well as the Varision though the Shoanti was nowhere in sight.

Carefully, I edged along the awning until I could wedge my feet to brace myself. Heaving, I lifted the sash of the window. The two girls were right beneath it inside.

“Girls, come here,” I shouted over the crackling of the fire and the bear’s roars. They looked in my direction but didn’t move. Their eyes were wide with fear.

“Come here now! You need to climb onto the roof with me to get out. I’ll help you. Come!”

However, they only pressed themselves further against the wall. The bear was frightening them too much. I was about to reach through the window to grab one of them, but at that moment there came a huge crash that shook the building.

I clutched at the window sill to steady myself. I vaguely remembered seeing the Varisian struggle to help a third girl up. However, my focus was to get the two girls out. Before I could speak, the bear lumbered over and roared right in their faces. I thought I heard the words “climb out the window” in Silvan, but their meaning was lost in the volume of the roar. Understandably, the two girls fainted right where they sat.

The bear, once he shut his mouth, looked around behind him, his nose twitching. Another crash and I saw a small, dark shape drop out of sight through the floor. The bear followed the noise with his head, but was too late to do anything.

It was of the utmost importance to get the girls out if the floor had started collapsing. I reached through and grabbed one of the girls. Her dead weight pulled at my shoulder but I managed to balance her on the window sill. I stopped to rest and massage my shoulder. The strain was almost too much. Grabbing onto the girl, I was about to pull again when the Shoanti appeared on the other side. She was stronger than me, apparently, because she heaved the girls one after the other through the window easily. I caught them and lowered them onto the sloped awning.

I quickly stepped out of the way as the Varisian climbed out of the window and joined me on the small roof.

“Behind you!” I called out and she turned around in time to see the bear start pushing a third girl out the window. He wasn’t very adept at it so she came to rest partially out.

I left the bear and the girl to the Varisian and grabbed the nearest unconscious girl. Eyeing the drop, I carefully jumped to the ground. Now that I was further away from the building I could see that it was in dire condition.

“Hurry up and pass me the other girl,” I yelled to the Varisian.

Inside the first floor, I thought I saw a dark shape, possibly the Shoanti, crawl off the counter, which was mostly ablaze, and disappear further into the house. I thought her crazy, personally, but there was no chance to yell after whoever it was. The Varisian had slid the second girl down the roof. I barely caught her in time as she tumbled off the edge. I lowered her to the ground beside the first.

Looking around I saw the madam still working on organizing the bucket brigade. I opened my mouth to shout at her, but a roar and a crash distracted me.